


Hunk of Burning Love

by PuppetMaster55



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Beach Day, M/M, Pining Keith (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-09
Updated: 2018-01-09
Packaged: 2019-03-02 18:33:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13324056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PuppetMaster55/pseuds/PuppetMaster55
Summary: During a Team Beach Day, Keith is guided into a fun day in the sun by Hunk. Too bad Keith neglected to say that he sunburned easily.my piece for the aphelion zine





	Hunk of Burning Love

The sand was a dull red, and somehow, the water was yellow, but all their sensors had indicated that it was safe for humans to wade into. Lance had gleefully declared visiting the shore a “Beach Day” and had gotten Allura and Coran on board.

Keith hunkered in the shadow beneath the umbrella, safe from the star’s light. He looked out at the beach, at Lance wading into the water with Pidge on his shoulders while Coran was gleefully carried down by Hunk and Allura.

“I hate everything,” Keith declared, glumly staring out at the water’s edge from over his knees.

“No, you don’t,” Shiro replied without missing a beat. He tapped the cool sand at Keith’s feet, his right arm stretched out in the shadow beside Keith. “You just need to put on sunblock. I did.”

Keith glared at Shiro, who nonchalantly sipped at his drink—something he and Coran swore wasn’t nunvil or anything that could be described using the word fermented, but Keith suspected otherwise. “Well, that’s because you have ordinary skin. You can put on some sunblock and be just fine. I can’t.”

Shiro snorted, laying his head back down on his towel as he returned to tanning his back. “Right. Because this alien sun can absolutely burn you, or even has the same chance of hurting you.”

“First up, we’re breathing the air here without dying. So the atmosphere’s, like, capable of filtering out the right radiation for tanning. Which you’re doing right now,” Hunk stated, wandered over and looking at Shiro with suspicion. Coran was in the water now, Pidge on his shoulders while they searched the water for Lance. Allura was standing along the shoreline, the water up to her knees. Lance exploded out of the water by her, causing her to shriek and reflexively punch out, sending Lance flying. Hunk started, hands going up to his face. “Oh no. Lance? Lance! Don’t be dead, buddy!”

“Still alive!” Lance wheezed out, washing onto the shore. Hunk yelped, running down to pick him up. Keith eyed Hunk’s running form appreciatively.

“You sure about staying under there?” Shiro teased, a knowing look in his eye. “Hunk could use a partner when Lance digs out the volleyball.”

“We don’t have a volleyball,” Keith replied hotly, feeling his face begin to flush. “And I’m fine right here.”

Shiro raised an eyebrow—judgmentally, in Keith’s opinion.

“You look red already,” Shiro said, a sly grin steadily growing on his face. “I’ve still got the sunblock. It’s not too late to stop that before it gets any worse.”

Keith squawked in offense, feeling the blush spread to the tips of his ears. Shiro turned back to sunbathing, laughing as Keith angrily shoved at him.

“Guys, no violence!” Hunk gently ordered, walking up to them with Lance cradled in his arms. “We’re already down one person. If we lose any more, we can’t have a volleyball tournament.”

“We _don’t have a volleyball_ ,” Keith repeated, insistent, hoping that his flush would be mistaken for something else entirely.

Hunk gingerly set Lance down beside Keith, frowning. “Yeah, we do. Lance made one with Coran’s help.”

Lance grinned, offering up finger guns at Hunk. “Success was inevitable.”

“And now we’re down a player,” Hunk replied while Lance continued to wheeze, laying down in the shade of the umbrella. Keith peered at him suspiciously, subtly shifting back even as he leaned forward to better see, and he winced at the bruising that covered Lance’s chest.

“You’re not dying again, are you?” Keith asked warily. He still vividly recalled the time when the Castle was invaded, still remembered how limp Lance had been.

“Nothing’s broken,” Hunk said, thick fingers gently—so gently that Keith was in awe that Hunk could be so gentle and soft with all his muscle—prodding and ghosting over Lance’s chest. “At least, it doesn’t look like anything’s broken. Or bleeding.”

“I’m out for volleyball,” Lance wheezed in laughter. “Guess I’m spectating. Keith.” Lance turned toward Keith with the most serious expression he could muster and placed an unsteady hand on Keith’s shoulder. “Avenge me. Take my place. Someone needs to take down Shiro and Allura.”

“Hey!” Shiro protested, not even looking opening his eyes or turning to actually look at Lance. “You don’t know we’re going to beat everyone.”

“It’s _Allura_ ,” Lance moaned, flopping his head back onto the red sand. “She’ll play to win. The volleyball will not survive, Shiro. Javier will die by her hand.”

“Javier?” Keith snorted, rolling his eyes. “Isn’t it supposed to be Wilson?”

Lance squinted at Keith while Hunk laughed, standing. He brushed the red sand off his knees, off his yellow swim trunks, and Keith was reminded, once more, that yellow (and red, but not the red of blood) was a good look on Hunk.

“Wilson,” Lance began with great feeling, “is a white person name. Javier is _my_ child, and I will never subject my children to that.”

“ _That’s_ what you’re taking away from that?” Hunk shook his head, smiling. “You’re fine, dude. I’m gonna go...” he trailed off, looking out into the surf, before nodding. “I’m gonna go toss Allura into the sea.”

“We will mourn you.” Lance saluted, not getting up from the sand. “Farewell, you beautiful hunk. I will spread tales of your exploits far and wide.”

“I’m not dying.” Hunk grinned. “Allura likes my food too much. And Yellow would sit on her if she hurt me.”

Lance waved Hunk off, and Keith watched him go. Hunk waded into the surf, the waves splashing against him, and Keith swallowed dryly.

“So, Keith, tell me,” Lance began, watching Keith intently. “How did you even survive a year in a desert if you apparently burn really easily?”

“Layers,” Keith replied, trying and failing to look away from Hunk. “The night I rescued Shiro—”

“The night _we_ rescued Shiro,” Lance corrected, pointedly glancing at Shiro, who had gone back to sunbathing—Keith was sure that he was awake and still listening closely.

“The night that _we_ rescued Shiro,” Keith amended because friendship with Lance was important for his life goals, “wasn’t the first time I wore that bandana over my face. Or that coat. Or my gloves.” He snorted. “You’re just lucky the wind took my hat, or it would’ve been there too.”

“What,” Lance hissed as he sat up, grinning. “You—you had a hat too? Were you a full cowboy?”

Keith flushed, swatting at the air in front of Lance. “Don’t even start. It was a floppy wide-brim hat. It kept the sun out of my eyes.”

“Everything about you makes so much more sense,” Lance breathed, flopping back onto the sand.

Out in the surf, Hunk had managed to sneak up behind Allura, and with a roar, he lifted her up and tossed her a clear ten feet. Allura shrieked, and Pidge stifled a scream while Coran screeched about royalty and safety and promises of revenge even as Pidge hopped onto him and brought them both down.

Hunk spotted Keith staring and waved, then flexed, his biceps glistening from the yellow surf. Keith made a strangled noise as he waved back.

“You okay there, Keith?” Shiro asked, turning to look at Keith with mild worry.

“He could crush my head like a melon with those guns, and I would _thank him_ ,” Keith replied with gusto, the blush returning full force. Beside him, Lance snorted.

“He’s gay, Shiro.” Lance tilted his head to get a clear look at Shiro, who raised an eyebrow and fixed Lance with a nonplussed stare.

“ _Really_?” he said, sarcasm dripping from every syllable. “I, Takashi Shirogane, the subject of Keith’s pubescent crush, had no idea. Do tell me what was your first clue.”

“Counterpoint,” Keith growled before the heckling could get worse. “You were the crush of half the student body. You have no leg to stand on.”

“And here I thought I was missing just an arm, not a leg, too.” Shiro grinned, leaning back. “Well, slap you in a suit of armor and call me Fullmetal. I hope I don’t lose the other leg if you start pulling it.”

“So talk to us about how you want Hunk to crush you with his muscles,” Lance said, staring at Keith with the most deceptively innocent expression he could muster.

“I don’t really want that,” Keith grumbled, his blush fading but still present. “Okay, yeah, I’ll admit that he could crush my head and snap me in two, but I just...” Keith reached out, making a frustrated noise. “He’s so gentle. You saw how he was with you, Lance. I want to hold his hands and cuddle with him.”

“Yeah. Sure. _Cuddle_ ,” Lance snorted, rolling his eyes. “That’s what the kids are calling it these days.”

“I’m serious, Lance!” Keith growled, getting to his feet. “All I want to do is—”

“Keith!” Hunk waved, and Keith faltered, looking over at Hunk eagerly. “Come on! Pidge and Coran got together, and Allura doesn’t want to play chicken. Do you want to be my guy?”

“Yes!” Keith called back, mind spinning over the fact that Hunk wanted to carry him on his shoulders. Pidge whooped in victory from her place atop Coran’s shoulders while Allura stepped out of the surf, wringing out her hair. Coran, meanwhile, was glaring at Hunk, determination set over his every being. “Just, uh, give me a minute to put on some sunblock.”

“All right.” Hunk nodded, giving Keith thumbs up. He paused, starting to wade out of the water. “Uh, did you need help putting it on? You’re already looking kind of—”

“I’m fine!” Keith yelped, waving his arms frantically. “I got it! I’m peachy!”

“Peachy,” Shiro flatly echoed, raising his eyebrows judgmentally. “I have never heard you say that.”

Keith turned away, giving Shiro the panicked face of a man prepared to go to his death. “Why did I say that? I never say that. Why did I agree? I’m going to go out, and I’m going to _die_. I’ve never been to a beach. I barely know how to swim.”

“You’re not going to die,” Lance assured him. “Hunk won’t let you. Or Allura. Or anyone here, for that matter.”

“You’re going to be fine,” Shiro agreed. “And if you are about to die, at least the Red Lion will come save you. One of us has to be certified in CPR.”

“Hunk is,” Lance added unhelpfully. Keith made another noise like a dying cat and held the sunscreen up carefully, like it was about to explode. “You sure you don’t need help there?”

“I’m _fine_ ,” Keith snapped, squirting a huge pile of sunblock onto his free hand and rubbing it over as much of his skin as he could find. “It’s just a game of chicken, and then back under here. I probably won’t even burn.”

* * *

Unfortunately, the game of chicken led to a game of water polo, which Keith was surprised to find Lance joining. He’d apparently annoyed Shiro into letting him spend twenty minutes in a cryopod to heal up the bruising just so that he could still be a part of the fun, which led to a melon crushing contest. Keith was pleased to find that while he, Lance, and Pidge couldn’t crush their melons, Hunk had taken all of theirs and flexed, spraying them all with the gelatinous innards.

Granted, the melons were a deep black, the size of Keith’s head, and vibrantly orange inside. It was still fun though, and the melons tasted sweet.

But Keith had had fun. So much so, that he hadn’t realized that he was getting a tan. Or a burn.

Keith groaned, sitting on the edge of his bed. It hurt to move, hurt to wear anything. His skin had turned a deep leathery red, and there was little he could see of himself that wasn’t colored red, wasn’t burned. As it stood, the most Keith could do was move enough to sit, stand, and move forward by waddling along like a penguin. At least he had Shiro and Pidge to thank for explaining to Allura what a sunburn was and why he wouldn’t be training or going on missions for the next spicolian movement.

He wanted to blame Lance for the dreadful Beach Day, wanted to blame Shiro and the others for pressing him into going out into the sun, but he couldn’t. He had only himself and Hunk to blame, and he didn’t want to blame Hunk, leaving only himself to bear the burden.

Keith looked up at a knock on the door, and he grimaced when it slid open to reveal Hunk sheepishly grinning, a huge jar filled with vibrantly glowing pink goop in hand.

“Keith!” Hunk grinned although it lacked heart, and he stepped inside. “Hey! I wanted to apologize for getting you all sunburnt like that. Which—wow. That is... a lot. You match your armor.”

Hunk stopped halfway to the bed, staring. Keith gave him a flat look, glad his skin was already red—it would hide all the blushing. Out of all the ways he’d imagined Hunk seeing him shirtless in his bedroom, being sunburnt and needing—what was Hunk carrying anyway?

“Is that some kind of Altean healing goop?” Keith warily asked, recalling the nunvil and Coran’s many attempts at making them foods he declared delicacies. When the first half of Hunk’s words sank in, he startled, looking up at Hunk intently. “Who said you had to apologize? You didn’t do anything wrong. You didn’t know, and I don’t like telling anyone that I have sensitive skin.” He shrugged and winced, biting back a hiss of pain as the burned skin of his neck screamed its displeasure. “Besides, I had fun, didn’t I? It was fun with you. Being your partner, I mean. In... chicken. And water polo. And seeing you crush all those melons at once was _amazing_.”

Keith grinned up at Hunk, glad that his skin couldn’t get any redder.

“Right.” Hunk gave Keith a dubious look, holding up the jar and pointing to it. “So Lance gave me this, and he said that Coran said that it worked wonders treating burns, so it should be great for you!”

“I don’t eat it, do I?” Keith asked, staring at it with less suspicion than before.

“No.” Hunk paused, squinting at the jar. “At least, I don’t think so. It’s some kind of salve, I think.”

“Oh.” Keith’s suspicion deflated, and he sighed. “Give it here, then. Thanks for bringing it.”

“Ooooh, no.” Hunk shook his head, moving to sit beside Keith on the bed. “You’re all sunburnt up; you can’t reach half the places that you’re burned. I don’t have that problem, so I’m going to put it on _for_ you. And make sure that you keep it on.”

    Keith made a protesting noise, but he couldn’t move enough to get away when Hunk took off his gloves before uncapping the jar, scooping up the hot pink salve and spreading it all over Keith’s left arm. He froze, staring down in shock as the pink salve slowly turned white, spreading a chill everywhere it touched.

Hunk hummed, nodding approvingly, and got to work spreading the rest of the salve on Keith’s other arm and both legs, his hands swift and his fingers gentle while they spread the salve everywhere. Keith wished that he could still hide his blush, even as the cool chill of the salve alleviated his aching pains. He stiffened as Hunk started in on his chest, and he desperately tried to suck in his gut and show off his abs.

Keith yelped when Hunk poked him in the belly button.

“Dude, stop moving. I can’t get an even coating if you’re working your core muscles like that.” Hunk gave him such a reproving glare that had Keith sighing, muttering out an apology as he let his stomach out, relaxing his abs. Hunk nodded approvingly, and Keith looked away as Hunk moved up to his shoulders. He scrunched his eyes shut as Hunk smeared it over his neck and all over his face before moving on to his back.

Already, the salve was turning foamy, which Keith figured meant that it was working and was nearly done healing him. He hoped that it was enough that he could move to wash it all off in the shower because Hunk’s fingers gently kneading the salve along his back was leaving Keith with a second problem entirely.

“How long do I have to keep this on?” Keith asked, hoping that his voice sounded steady as he struggled to keep from crossing his legs or grabbing his pillow and tossing it onto his lap. “It’s getting all foamy. And kind of tingly.”

“I think ten minutes?” Hunk shrugged, giving Keith a helpless look before returning to his back. “Dude, your back muscles are really tense. Like, I know a little bit about massage—Lance knows more, he taught me because he wanted free back massages—and your back is so tense. You need to relax more.”

“I am relaxed,” Keith grit out, giving Hunk a very forced smile. He both wanted and didn’t want Hunk to stop with the massage, his fingers rubbing and pushing against Keith’s back in a soothing manner that wasn’t doing anything to stop his problem. “Maybe you can give me a massage after I’m healed up from the sunburn?”

Hunk paused, and Keith had to try hard not to whine when the massage stopped. It felt so good, and he wanted Hunk to continue forever.

“I guess I could.” Hunk nodded to himself, reaching up to put his chin in his right hand before making a face at the salve coating it. “I’m going to wash my hands off. This stuff feels _slimy_ when you don’t have a burn. Maybe I can give you a massage tomorrow?”

Keith smiled again, softer this time, more genuine. “It’s a date.”


End file.
